Don't Go
by Scarlet Phlame
Summary: Alec opens up to Ellie about the Sunbrook case. ONESHOT, may continue. (I own nothing.) Slight crossover with Doctor Who at the end.


"It's my last day in Broadchurch," Ellie said. "After today, I don't think I'll ever come back here again."

The two ex-detectives sat perched on the beach, Alec with a heavy look, and Ellie completely neutral. Gray skies above and wind flitting across their two figures.

"Yeah," Alec grunted, not saying much else.

"I don't even know what I'm going to do," Ellie said. "I mean, how about you?"

"I'll figure something out," Alec said quietly, eyes glued to the horizon.

Elle sucked in a breath. "I forgot to say... thanks."

"What for?"

"For... well, everything," Ellie said with a sigh. "I just didn't think it was gonna be him... why me? Why this, why now?" she chuckled humorlessly. "That's all I can say after all this that's happened. Why?"

"I know the feeling," Alec said, causing Ellie to frown.

"No, you don't," Ellie said. "This is the one exact case I wish I'd never taken. You have no clue what it's like? What am I gonna tell the kids, then? When they grow up, they'll always know about their father's betrayal."

"I know," Alec noted.

"I think I hate him," Ellie grumbled.

"I know," Alec repeated.

"Yeah, is that all you're gonna say all day?" Ellie shot back. "I know, I know, I know. Well, I don't know. And I'm the one in the center of this. You've not stayed in this town for long. You don't know these people like I do."

"Oh, well, it's not like it's all smiles and sunshine for me," Alec scoffed. "This is my last case ever. I just nearly solved it and even that's a 'nearly'. All my other cases have been shrouded in darkness, doubt, already."

"So?" Ellie asked. "It's not like it's everyone else's fault that you failed the Sandbrook case."

"What?" Alec asked, his demeanor slipping for a moment as his heart fluttered. "Who told you about that?"

"Oh, don't be ridiculous, I read up on you," Ellie said. "You lost the evidence. Don't make it seem like it was anybody else's fault."

"Ellie," Alec said. "Stop it."

"No, but really, is that what you do?" Ellie said, ignoring Alec completely as she stared out at the beach. "Just hop around and... and... risk everyone just so you can redeem yourself? Because if it is, then I don't want a part in it. I don't even know why I covered for you, I mean, that's just rubbish. You took that job and you were unfit for it. What if you left and we got stuck?"

She paused for a second, then turned to see Alec with his eyes closed, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"Sorry," she said, watching him as he wiped away stray tears hurriedly as soon as he noticed she'd turned around. "But why won't you tell me what's the matter with you?"

"There is nothing the matter with me," Alec said through gritted teeth. "I am perfectly fine."

"No, but you aren't," she said. "I mean, it doesn't take a detective to figure out you're lying. Now tell me, what is it?"

Alec sighed. "It was a... a while back. I was working on the Sandbrook case. We had the evidence. It was a pendant. My DI took the car out and went to get a drink, celebrate, she was having an affair with... another DI." he paused for a moment and sighed.

"While she was out, her car was broken into," he continued.

"Wait, I saw that bit. But it was your car," Ellie said with a frown. "They said, they said it was your car. Oh, my god. Did you take the fall for it?"

"Are you gonna let me finish?" Alec snapped, before sighing. "She was under my supervision. So I said it was my car."

"That's bull," Ellie said. "You couldn't have stopped it happening."

"Ellie," Alec said. "She was my wife."

"What." Ellie said.

"The DI was my wife. I didn't... we had a daughter. I didn't want her to know. So... I lied," Alec said. "I took the fall."

"Why?" Ellie asked quietly.

"Because," Alec said firmly. "She really loved her mother. They were so close... I... I didn't want to..." he paused and ran his hand through his hair. "I didn't want her to know."

"What?" Ellie groaned. "So you just... let her grow up with a liar? If anyone's unfit, it's her mother!"

"Our relationship was always unstable and she was closer to her mother," Alec said. "I didn't want to take that from her."

"You stupid," Ellie said, inhaling sharply. "idiot."

"Well, what else was I supposed to do?" Alec snapped.

"I'm sorry," Ellie finally spoke. "I really don't know what to say. Didn't you... I don't know, didn't you ever try to call her or anything? Your daughter, I mean."

"All the time," Alec said. "It's so pathetic, because I still call her everyday. Her phone's on so I know she's getting them, but she never picks it up. I keep on waiting for it to ring but I know it isn't. She's not gonna call me. Her mother probably turned her on me, anyway."

"Again," Ellie said. "why do these things happen to us?"

"I don't know," Alec sighed. "Maybe because they need to. Maybe because they make us better."

"Yeah, you sure look 'better'," Ellie scoffed.

"I'm going to do the surgery," Alec said after a minute of silence. "I may as well."

"But you don't know you'll survive," Ellie pointed out.

"Yeah, thanks for telling me, I had no clue," Alec said, rolling his eyes. Ellie smacked him in the arm.

"Don't you dare go dying on me, sir."

"Couldn't if I wanted to," Alec said bravely.

"This job is shit, though," Ellie mumbled.

"Should've been a doctor," Alec teased.

"Don't you go getting clever on me," Ellie said, narrowing her eyes, before pausing. "You know... much as we fight, we do make a pretty good team."

"S'pose so, yeah," Alec said.

"I heard there were jobs going in London," Ellie continued. "I don't know, maybe we could..."

"Could what?" Alec asked slowly.

"I was just saying," Ellie said. "Maybe we could find work there. I mean, not like, well... oh, you know what I'm saying."

"Do I?"

"Oh, do shut up," Ellie spoke sharply.

Pause.

"So is that a yes, then?" Ellie asked.

"I really don't know what you're asking," Alec said with a sigh.

"No, nor I," Ellie mumbled. "Unless... well, we could always go sort of... undercover."

"Why is this starting to sound like a G.I. Joe movie?"

"I'm serious," Ellie said. "We could like... I don't know. Investigate undercover. Feed details to people. I have a mate back in London who's an officer. We could help out."

"This is it," Alec finally said. "This is the end of the world. Ellie is asking me to investigate undercover with her."

"Not funny," Ellie said with a glare. "I'm serious, we could."

"Yeah, we could. And then ride off into the sunset on a stallion with pigs flying in the distance," Alec said with a chuckle. Soon, both of them burst into laughter.

"Well, nice to see you cheered up a bit," Ellie said after a while, still grinning slightly. "So. Is that a yes?"

* * *

"I guess this is it, then," Alec said. Two hours had passed since their conversation on the beach.

"Yeah," Ellie said with a nod.

"Time to say goodbye," Alec said.

"Okay," Ellie said, standing up and waving at the town. "Goodbye!" she stepped into the car.

"See you in London," she said.

"See you," Alec said. "I need to go get a few more things. Be right over."

"Fine," Ellie said.

Alec headed off into the distance, ran upstairs into the hotel, and pocketed his last few items, grabbed his bags, and, with a heavy breath, set back outside.

He was about a block away from the car when a woman appeared out of what seemed nowhere, running top speed and tackling him to the ground.

"DOCTOR!" she shrieked, panting heavily. "Thank God I found you!"

"What?" Alec asked, blinking.

"It's me, silly," the girl said. "Martha Jones. I've got the fob watch. Remember, when we got out of the TARDIS, they found us? You used an emergency teleport but we got separated."

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you're talking about," Alec said.

"I know, but it'll make sense in a minute," Martha said slowly. "You just need to open this watch." she held out a silvery pocketwatch with strange markings all over the surface. "It'll all make sense. Promise."

* * *

_**Do I continue? No? Review and let me know!**_


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